Synergic effect of oral contraceptives, GSTP1 polymorphisms, and high-risk HPV infection in development of cervical lesions.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is considered a risk factor for cervical cancer. Even if the high-risk HPV (HR-HPV) infection is necessary, environmental co-factors and genetic susceptibility also play an important role in cervical cancer development. In this study, a possible association of rs1695 GSTP1 polymorphisms, HR-HPV infection, and oral contraceptive use with cancer lesion development in women was investigated. The study population comprised 441 Brazilian women from the Northeast region including 98 HPV-infected women with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions, 77 HPV-infected women with low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions, and 266 HPV-negative women with no lesion, used as a control. Our data did not show a significant association between the GSTP1 polymorphism A/G (rs1695) and any HPV-related cervical abnormalities. However, considering the use of oral contraceptives, the GSTP1 rs1695 polymorphism was associated with higher susceptibility to the development of cervical lesions in HR-HPV-infected women. Our study suggests a synergic effect of oral contraceptive use, GSTP1 polymorphisms, and HR-HPV infection in the development of cervical lesions. Together, these risk factors may induce neoplastic transformation of the cervical squamous epithelium, setting conditions for secondary genetic events leading to cervical cancer.

Prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV), distribution of HPV types, and risk factors for infection in HPV-positive women.

The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV), the distribution of different HPV types, and the putative risk factors for infection among HPV-positive women from the State of Alagoas, Northeast Brazil. We analyzed data from 515 patients attending public and private health centers. HPV DNA from cervical samples was extracted and HPV genotyping was performed by polymerase chain reaction using MY09/11 consensus primers followed by direct sequencing. The chi-squared test for independence was used to assess statistical differences between the HPV groups. HPV DNA was found in 111 (21.55%) cervical samples. Twenty genotypes were detected: HPV6, 11, 16, 31, 33, 35, 39, 52, 53, 54, 58, 61, 62, 66, 70, 72, 81, 82, 83, and 84. In addition, multiple sexual partners (P = 0.002) and the use of oral contraceptives (P = 0.015) were associated with the presence of HPV. These findings may be relevant to the design of screening and vaccination strategies targeting specific groups of women in Northeast Brazil.

Functional histopathological and morphometric study of the use of gangliosides in nerve regeneration in rats after axonotmesis.

The purpose of the present functional, histopathological and morphometric study was to evaluate, qualitatively and quantitatively, the function of gangliosides (GM1, GD1a, GD1b e GT1b) in peripheral nerve regeneration. An experimental model was used with 96 male albino Wistar rats (Rattus norvegicus, Muridae). After the sciatic nerves of young adults had been crushed for 2 min using haemostatic tweezers, the rats were divided into experimental and control groups. The 48 animals in the experimental group received subcutaneous dorsal injections of gangliosides for 15 days after the surgical action, while the 48 control animals were injected with a saline solution. A functional, histopathological and morphometric evaluation of the sciatic function index (SFI) was made on 12 rats from both groups at 8, 15, 30 and 60 days. As a result of the methodology employed and the functional, histopathology and morphometric analyses, it was concluded that the administration of exogenous gangliosides seems to enhance nerve regeneration, because it stimulated the proliferation of Schwann cells and perhaps reduced the presence of inflammatory ones, seeming to promote nerve regeneration after axonotmesis.